The One With Mother Oceania

I have nothing against “event songs” or whatever you want to call them. But truth is, more often than not, they are too literal and predictable and… well, boring! Sure, you want to get a message across, but that doesn’t warrant the in-your-face approach. Here are two choruses from the Beijing Olympic songs:

“Welcome to Beijing; we’ve done a lot for your visit.

Its charm in ever changing is full of life.

Welcome to Beijing; let’s breathe together in the sunshine.

Let’s establish new records here in China.

[...]

Welcome to Beijing; like moving music, our hospitality will warm your heart.

Let’s try to challenge ourselves.

Welcome to Beijing; people who have dreams are all bravo.

If only you keep the courage, miracles will happen”

Again, it is not WHAT they are saying that bothers me, but HOW. Where is the subtlety? Where is the reflection? Where is the imagery? Here are the lyrics to “Oceania”, the song Björk wrote for and performed at the Olympic Games in Athens in 2004:

“One breath away
from Mother Oceania
your nimble feet make prints
in my sand

You have done
good for yourselves
since you left my wet embrace
and crawled ashore

Every boy is a snake is a lily
every pearl is a lynx is a girl

Sweet like harmony
made into flesh
you dance by my side
children sublime

You show me continents
- I see the islands
you count the centuries
- I blink my eyes

Hawks and sparrows
race in my waters
stingrays are floating
across the sky

Little ones
- my sons and my daughters
your sweat is salty – I am why
I am why
I am why

your sweat is salty – I am why
I am why
I am why”

I’d rather listen to a song and think “WTH?!” than “So what?“… Here, there’s a perspective (the ocean’s or “Mother Oceania”’s), a storyline (where we all come from and how we’ve evolved), and that intriguing last lyric “Your sweat is salty – I am why”. When I first heard the song and couldn’t really catch all the lyrics, I didn’t quite understand what she was talking about. But upon reading the lyrics, you can only think brilliant! Our sweat is the sea water that we’ve kept from our beginnings as aquatic creatures… and this lyric also closes the song as a tongue-in-cheek link to the sweat-inducing Olympic Games.

The performance of the song itself is stunning, with Björk’s Greek-goddess dress spreading in huge waves as it is pulled by the thousands of athletes huddled at the centre of the stadium, to end up as a giant map of the world. Check it out here.

Peace

Photo Credit: Original at http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/pictures/2004/08/14/mn_olympicsopenin34.jpg

Tags: Athens 2004, Björk, Oceania, Olympic Games, Olympic Song, Opening Ceremony, Sports